J.M. Smucker Co. Names Katie Williams Chief Marketer

Katie Williams, formerly the chief marketer at Haleon, has been named chief marketing officer at The J.M. Smucker Co., effective March 9.

"We are thrilled to welcome Katie to the company. She brings deep expertise and a strong track record of building leading brands," said Mark Smucker, J.M. Smucker's CEO and board chair, in a media release. "I am confident she will help to advance our portfolio of leading brands forward and elevate our world-class marketing capabilities."

Williams brings more than 20 years of experience building leading brands. Most recently at Haleon, Williams led commercial and brand strategy for a broad portfolio that includes Advil, Sensodyne, Tums, Emergen-C and Centrum. 

Before Haleon spun off from parent company GSK in 2022, Williams served as U.S. CMO for GSK. Earlier in her career, she held marketing leadership positions for Mondelez International and Kraft Heinz. 

"Throughout my career, I have relentlessly focused on driving sustainable brand growth and building high-performing teams. I look forward to continuing this work at Smucker," Williams said in the release. "I am honored to have this opportunity to serve as a steward for this incredible portfolio and to support this team's continued success in building brands consumers love." 

In 2023, the Path to Purchase Institute named Williams one of its Women of Excellence. She subsequently was named the Executive of the Year.

Previous J.M. Smucker CMO Gail Hollander, who had announced she intended to retire, will remain with the organization in an advisory role until April 30. 

J.M. Smucker's brands include Folgers, Dunkin', Cafe Bustelo, Jif, Uncrustables, Smucker's, Hostess, Milk-Bone and Meow Mix. 

This article first appeared on the site of sister brand P2PI.